Recipe Finder: Frikadelle

Julie Rothman, For The Baltimore Sun

BevHannon from Marion, Iowa, was looking for a recipe for making meatballs similar to the ones her husband's mother, who was of Belgian descent, used to make. Her husband recalls that his mother made them with a combination of ground beef and pork and that she frequently served them with cooked cabbage. He was not sure, but he thought they might have been called something like "frikadel."

LeoneMichel from Granger, Ind., thought that her recipe for making German meat patties or Frikadelle is likely what Hannon is in search of. She said her husband is German and that she has adapted this recipe from several that she has in German and Austrian cookbooks. She said her husband is very satisfied with her adaptation. She said that meatballs can be served as part of a main meal with a sauce and side of boiled potatoes or cooked cabbage or as her family prefers, as a patty on a bun, almost like an American style hamburger.

Many variations of Frikadelle exist, but traditionally they are made with combination of minced pork, veal or beef, chopped onion, eggs, milk, breadcrumbs, seasoning and flour. The exact ingredients and combinations can vary some depending on country of origin and individual family recipes.

I decided to test Michel's recipe using a combination of 1/2 ground pork and 1/2 half lean ground beef shaped into golf-ball sized meatballs and fried in a vegetable oil and butter mixture. Her recipe made a good, if slightly bland, meatball that I served with mashed potatoes and green beans. Everyone thought it made a hearty supper, however next time I likely would make a simple brown gravy to accompany the meatballs or do as Michel does and serve it patty style on a bun.

Requests

Carolyn Frey from Essex has lost her recipe for making ricotta cheesecake. She is hoping someone has a good one that one they can share with her.

Matt Miller from Cockeysville is looking for a recipe for a lamb stew with white gravy.

If you are looking for a recipe or can answer a request, write to Julie Rothman, Recipe Finder, and The Baltimore Sun, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21278 or email baltsunrecipefinder@gmail.com. If you send in more than one recipe, please put each on a separate piece of paper and be sure to include your name, address and daytime phone number. Important: Name and hometown must accompany recipes in order to be published. Please list the ingredients in order of use, and note the number of servings each recipe makes. Please type or print contributions. Letter and recipes may be edited for clarity.